bits and pieces
by thimblings
Summary: Collection of short one shots, primarily gen., focusing on Sora's moments and interactions in different worlds.
1. ocean

**Opening AN: **These are basically going to be a series of short one shots/drabbles for KH (mostly gen./friendship), based off of a prompt list I found somewhere, that deal primarily with the different Disney characters and their worlds and Sora's interaction with them. These are coming as my first _real _foray into the KH-writing fandom, so I'm still getting used to the characters. Also, stylistically, these might get annoying (because of fragments, random formatting, etc.). Ha ha. My style fluctuates depending on what I'm reading at the moment, I think, and these first few are from a time when I was reading a lot of fragmented-poetic-type stories, so...I apologize for any confusion while reading. Updates will be really random, sorry - I'm not regular with anything. But, hopefully these will be enjoyable to someone.

* * *

**title: **ocean  
**world:** atlantica  
**disclaimer: **kingdom hearts © squarenix, ariel/_part of your world_ lyrics © disney

"Sora…have you ever been…_**up there**_?"

"Up where?"

"Above the water…"

Ariel fingered the ballerina music box again.

"Out of the ocean…"

The ballerina twirled to music that neither of them could hear.

"Out of **here**…"

She looked up at the crack of sunlight seeping through the hole in the grotto.

Sora watched her a bit sadly. Here, the ocean was a world of its own.

_**Up there**_…that was another world entirely. A world of men. Of grass and sand.

Of new things.

Things Ariel could never get close to, things she could never experience.

Because she wasn't part of that world. The ocean…that was her home.

But, oh, how she longed to be part of **something else**…

"No…" Sora said after a moment, not really lying. But not really telling the truth.

"What would it be like, I wonder?"

Her arms stretched above her head, towards the surface so far away.

Grabbing the sun.

And Sora remembered, faintly, a friend reaching for the horizon.

Holding stars in the palm of his hand.

"_Don't you want to know what's out there? Beyond the island, beyond _us_?"_

"What's so good about _out there_?" he asked.

What was wrong with _home_? What was wrong with _here_ and _now_?

"Because it's not **here**. Because it's **new**. Because there's **more**. And I know it."

She smiled at him, ambitious and curious and eager.

_When's it my turn?_

_Wouldn't I love, love to explore that shore up above?_

And Sora knew why he liked Ariel so much.

And why he was so afraid of her.

"_C'mon, Sora. Wouldn't it be an adventure?"_

"Don't you think it would be an adventure?"

But never an adventure they could take together.

_Wish I could be…part of that world._


	2. follow me

**title: **follow me  
**world: **in the deep jungle (Tarzan)  
**disclaimer: **kingdom hearts © squarenix, tarzan/_you'll be in my heart _lyrics © disney

_Come, stop your crying…it will be all right…_

_Just take my hand, hold it tight…_

_I will protect you from all around you…_

Sora stopped. His feet crunched a few leaves on the wood as he turned around slowly, looking at the room and the wreckage. There was a feeling about this room—this place—this house—that made him feel uneasy. Remnants of tarps, ripped to shreds, blew in the humid jungle wind. A red tint covered areas of the wood, places where the floor was rotted from years of decaying. Long lines scraped across the walls, dug in deep, carved from panic and horror, from the force of being dragged away. A broken picture frame was crushed on the ground.

The boy in the picture was familiar, and Sora didn't even have to stop for a moment to think who it was.

But, he didn't want to believe it.

The face in the picture was so small, so fragile.

And the wreckage around was so scary.

The room was so _cold_.

He pulled the picture close to him, hugging it with all his might.

"I'm sorry," he said softly.

To the boy. To himself.

To his mother.

Miles and miles away. Gone. Destroyed. Missing.

Missing _**him**_.

Alone.

The room seemed so much smaller.

Soft feet outside caused Sora to jump, and he quickly put the picture back where he found it.

"Sora?"

He wiped his eyes before Tarzan appeared in the doorway.

"Are you all right?" And his voice was kind, his face strong.

Sora felt his eyes sting again as he thought of the boy in the picture.

"Yeah, I'm okay," he said, almost a whisper.

"Jane and the others are in trouble," Tarzan informed him, a worried, angry look on his face. "Follow me!"

And he bounded off, sliding down the tree outside.

Did he know?

Did he see the picture?

Didn't he miss her too?

_I will be here, don't you cry…_


	3. glow

**title: **glow  
**world: **destiny islands  
**short AN: **this one's really short and a little less gen. than the others, but not much. It's, more or less, hinted SoraxKairi.  
**disclaimer: **kingdom hearts © squarenix

The day _she_ came, Sora could have sworn a thousand stars fell from the sky.

Even though, Riku tells him, it was really just one. If even.

The day _she_ came, Sora insists that the fireflies blinked a million times brighter.

But, Riku tells him, it wasn't even the right time for fireflies to come out.

The day _she _came, Sora knows that the birds chirped louder, sang more beautifully.

What birds? Riku asks him. The seagulls?

Sora knows these truths.

Even if Riku denies them, Sora knows them to be true.

Because, the day _she _came…

The day _Kairi_ came…

Sora's heart began to **glow**.


	4. fear

**title: **fear  
**world: **land of the dragons (Mulan)  
**short AN: **Ha ha. This one's incredibly cheesy. Ah well. I like the idea of Sora/Mulan friendship, even if the Land of Dragons part of KH2 wasn't the most well done storywise. I'll just let my head draw out events and make up scenarios. Ha ha.  
**disclaimer: **kingdom hearts © squarenix, mulan/_true to your heart _lyrics © disney

"I'm afraid, Sora."

He could barely hear Mulan's voice over the sound of the crickets outside. "You thinking about what'll happen if you get caught?" he asked, looking over at her slightly. The moon glowed just enough through the thin fabric of the tent that Sora was able to make out the majority of her features.

"Well, yes, but…" she trailed off, turning on her back and putting her hands behind her head. "Also…What if I just make a fool of myself? What if I don't prove anything? What if…by the end of this…nothing is better? What if I can't make it?"

Sora turned on his back too, imagining he could see the stars overhead.

In his mind, they were still blinking out, one-by-one.

Too often, he dreamed that he had failed. And it made him want to give up hope.

"You'll make it, Ping," he said softly. "You have a lot of spunk and courage."

He could see Mulan smile.

"For a girl," he added in a low whisper, smirking as he did so.

"Well, you have a big heart," she said kindly. And then she added, "For a boy."

They laid together for awhile longer, in silence.

"But I'm not courageous," she finally said. "I'm not brave."

A sigh.

"I'm only me. And that scares me."

Sora closed his eyes.

"And I'm only a disappointment."

"Mulan…" he whispered, grabbing her hand in the dark, squeezing it softly.

"If I'm caught, I'll just be even more of a disappointment. I can't even get married."

Sora smirked again, eyes lighting up. "You defeated Shang in one-on-one today, _and_ you did Yao's laundry. Not to mention, you jump on that stupid horse that tried to kill me everyday. And now you're scared that you're not going to be _married_?" He laughed. "You really _are_ a girl."

Mulan blushed slightly, but she still smiled. "He didn't try to kill you."

"And, I'll tell you what—you're not a disappointment. Who cares if the matchmaker lady thinks you are. I'm proud of you. Mushu's proud of you. I bet even Shang'd be proud of you if he'd just let himself. You're not a disappointment to us," he said with confidence and understanding. And, with a big grin, "And…I guess you _do_ make the perfect boy."

She pretended to hit him, lightly, before looking in his eyes.

"You really are a good friend, Sora. Thank you."

_When you doubt yourself, you don't just let __**you**__ down. You let everyone down._

_You give up hope._

_You fail._

The smile on her face told him that there was hope. That he hadn't lost yet.

And, even though he was comforting _her_, it was almost like she had said:

"They're still there. Because of you. You did it. You won. You're a hero."

And fear was nothing. Fear was a figment.

_But you'll never fall till you let go_

_Don't be so scared of what you don't know_

…_You must be true to your heart_

…**Your heart can tell you no lies**


End file.
